This morning I birded on private land at Mountain Falls, in Pahrump, Nevada. At 7:28 a.m. I took photos of an American Golden Plover juvenile. I was not sure at the time if it was a Black bellied Plover juvenile. When it flew it did not have black axillaries. To confirm the photos I sent them onto expert birders as I have only prior experience with Black Bellied Plovers and I did not want to make a mistake reporting this sighting. I took photos during the one hour I observed it. It flew in with 11 Killdeer. It landed and then stood tall. My first thought was that it was a Black Bellied Plover. I watched it fly and realized it was something else. I looked through my bird books and compared it with an American Plover. I still was not sure so I sent photos onto expert birders Tom and Jo Heindel and they sent me back a confirmation. It was a very exciting morning.
Submitted by
Darlene Feener
Pahrump, Nevada